Marietta Mavrokordatou’s photographs depict disassembled kaleidoscopes, they point to photography’s inherent connection to light. The kaleidoscope was first designed to study the principles of symmetry, reflection and colour. The components of a kaleidoscope also contain the foundational elements of a camera: glass and mirror.

The Virgin verse series uses the kaleidoscope as a means of producing a ‘virgin sight’, one that is untouched and never previously seen. The glass shards turn in rotation to reveal a new fragmented perspective with each twist. Verse refers to different versions of the same rhythm, the same pattern never occurring twice in the kaleidoscope.

Taken using a macro lens, with a narrow depth of field, the images mimic Marietta’s own experience of shortsightedness. Her eyes can only bring objects into focus at a very close vantage point. Marietta continually explores the potential of photography by virtue of autobiography.